Asphalt shingle



Aug. 10, 1937. o. J. KUHN I ASPHALT SHINGLE Original Filed May 27, 1932 IIIIIIII" Patented Aug. 10, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT QFFICE] Otto J. Kuhn, Syracuse, N. Y.

Application May 27, 1932, Serial No. 613,902

Renewed February 3, 1937 8 Claims.

This invention relates to certain improvements in shingles of the class set forth in my pending application Serial No. 550,489 filed July 13, 1931, and refers more particularly to the means for 5 determining the amount-of overlap and alinel ment of the shingles during progressive laying of the same.

The main object is to enable these shingles to be cut from the sheets without waste and in 10' such manner that a greater number of squares may be more accurately laid in a given period of time and with less labor than has heretofore been practised.

One of the specific objects is to provide one 15 corner of each shingle with an underfolding flap having a nailing tab projecting beyond the adjacent end edge of the shingle so that it may be nailed to a supporting surface without nailing through the body of the shingle and thus permit the end of an adjacent shingle to be easily inserted between the flap and main body to be firmly held in place by the fold of the flap.

Other objects and uses will be brought out in thefollowing description.

In the drawing:--

Figure 1 is a faceview of a portion of a roof or siding with a number of my improved shingles applied thereto.

Figure 2 is a plan on a reduced scale of a portion of a sheet from which the shingles. are cut, showing the manner of cutting the same without waste.

Figure 3 is an enlarged sectionalview taken on line 3-3, Figure 1.

35 Figure 4 is a perspective View of a portion of the roof or siding and several of the shingles, partly broken away, applied thereto.

Figure 5 is a reduced plan of one of the shingles after being cut from the sheet and before 40 the flap is folded under the body.

In order that the invention may be clearly understood, I have shown a portion of the roof or siding A to which the, shingles are to be applied, as provided with a layer l of water im- 45 pervious paper, asphaltum or any other suitable material to serve as a backing for the shingles and thereby to assist in rendering the roof or siding water and weatherproof.

The shingle forming the subject matter of this 5 invention is preferably made of pliable waterproof material such as a composition of asphalt, felt, or other equivalent materials, thoroughly fabricated to form a fiat sheet of uniform thickness which is usually provided with an outer 55. layer of fine gravel or equivalent material permanently incorporated therein to better resist wear.

These shingles are of uniform sizeand shape and are adapted to be laid by what is commonly known as the Dutch lap method in which the adjacent ends of each course overlap one upon the other.

Each shingle comprises a substantially rectangular main body 2 having one corner, in this instance the lower right hand corner, provided with an offset extension flap 3 adapted to be folded at 3 along the adjacent longitudinal edge of and under the main body parallel with the longitudinal center thereof to the'position indicated by dotted lines in Figure 5 and by full lines in Figures 1, 3 and 4.

The flap 3 is somewhat triangular and of approximately the length of the end overlap required and has its free end provided with analling tab 4 projecting beyond the adjacent end edge of the main body when folded thereunder so that a nail may be driven therethrough and into the underlying support for holding the shingle thereon without passing through the main body of the shingle.

The adjacent end edge of the main body 2 is provided with a recess 5 the same distance from the folding line 3 as the tab and preferably complementary thereto so that when the flap 3 is folded under the main body the tab 4 will register with the recess 5, thereby facilitating the driving of the nail through the tab and at the same time bringing the nail as closely as possible to the adjacent edge of the shingle.

The opposite corner of the-same end of the shingle is provided with a recess 6 which is com- .plementary to the flap 3 and both determine the amount of overlap upon the end of the next adjacent shingle of the same course and also the minimum overlap of the shingles of the next course.

The inner edge 3" of the flap 3 andcorrespond ing wall of the recess 6 are disposed diagonally to the longitudinal center of the shingle and their corresponding inner ends constitute markers or indicia l and l with which the end edge of the next adjacent shingle of the-same course is registered to additionally determine the amount of end overlap of the shingles of the same course,

one upon the other, and thereby assuring perfect of the shingles of the next super-posed course is adapted to register and incidentally determines the minimum overlap of the shingles of the next course to facilitate the proper alining of the lower edges of the several courses Without previous marking the support upon which the shingles are laid.

The tab 4 and portion of the main body .of the shingle adjacent the recess 6 are provided with nail holes 8 and 8' through which nails a" may be driven. into the underlying support to firmly, hold the adjacent end of the shingle in place.

It will be noted, however, that the nail hole- 8' of each shingle is located some distance from and between the shoulder'l and end edge of the shingle and also between and in spaced relation to the shoulders 6 and l. n

When the shingle is placed in operative position upon its support, a nail a is driven through the hole 8 in the tab 4 to firmly hold the corresponding end of the shingle in place after which the next adjacent shingle is inserted endwise from the right hand toward the left hand into the fold between the flap'3 and main body over the head of the nail a which was previously driven through thetab 4 and until the end edge of the underlying shingle has registered with themarkersor indicia 1 and l whereupon an additional nail is driven through the hole 8 and underlying portion of the next adjacent shingle and into the underlying support, thereby securing the overlapping portions of the shingles to each other and to said support.

.When laying the shingles of the next superposed course, their lower edges will be brought into approximate registration (with slight overlap) with the marker or indicia 5, thereby covering the heads of the nails (1 which were driven through the holes 8'. 7

As a further means for determining the amount of end overlap of the shingles of the same course, the left hand end of the lower lengthwise edge of each shingle is provided with a relatively shallow recess 9, while the corresponding end of the upper edge is provided with a complementary projection 9, the length of the recess 9 and projection 9' being approximately equal to the length of the fold of the flap 3 and recess 6.v a

The recess 9 and opposite complementary projection 9' are relatively shallow transversely but parallel with the longitudinal center of the shingle, thus forming end shoulders l0 and I0 which serve as markers or indicia to determine the amount of lap under the adjacent end of the next left hand shingle of the same course.

It will be observed upon reference to Figure 5 that the folded line 3' for the flap is in approximate alinement with the lower edge of the main body of the shingle and that owing to the nature of the material of which the shingle is made,

the fold will be more or less semi-circular in cross section and, therefore, the inner face of the fold will be slightly inside of the lower edge of the main body of the shingle, While the outer edge of the fold will be slightly beyond the lower edge;of said main body, as shown in Figures 1 and fl: and in order that the shingles of the same coursemay be in exact alinement, the left hand end of the lower edge is formed with a recess 9 previously explained, to compensate for the inward projection of the inner face of the fold of the fiap 3.

It is, therefore, evident that when the next right hand shingle is inserted into the fold of the fiap 3, its shoulder l0 will engage the right hand end of the fold and thereby limit the amount of underlap of said right hand shingle while at the same time the left hand end of the next adjacent shingle will be brought into approximate registration with the shoulder 1', thereby'assuring at a glance the alinement of the shingles of the same course without pre-marking of the supports upon which the shingles are placed.

The shingles are usually laid in horizontal courses from the bottom upward beginning at the left hand side of the roof or siding with each course, the lower course being laid first.

That is, the left hand shingle of the lower course is first placed in operative position upon the upper surface of the covering l of the support A and is then secured in place by driving a nail therethrough to tab 4 into the underlying support, it being understood that care will be taken to arrange the first shingle in proper horizontal and vertical position and that in addition to the nail a driven through the upper left hand corner of the first shingle above the lower edge of the next super-posed course, to assist in holding the shingle in its proper position.

When thefirstshingle is properly secured in operative position, the next right hand shingle of.

the same. course will be insertedjbetween the underfolded fiap 3 and main body until the left hand end edge of the second shingle is registered respectively with the shoulders I and l at-which time the shoulder ll] of the, second shingle will have been brought into engagement with the right-5 hand end of :the fold of the first shingle, whereupon a nail will be driven through the. tab 4 of the second shingle and an additional nail will be driven through the hole 8' of the first shingle and thence through the underlying portion of the second shingle into the support A, thus securingthe second shingle in place. 7 a

This operation is repeated until the first course of shingles is laid with the assurance that each' shingle will be held in place by at least two nails and that each shingle will be additionally locked A nail will'then be driven through the tab 4" of the first shingle of the second course and another nail a through the upper left hand corner of the same shingle above the upper edge of the underlying shingle of the first course.

Now," having "established the position' of the second course relatively to the first'course, the

second course will be laid in the manner described I for the first course and each succeeding course may be laid in like manner until theworkis completed. Y I Under ordinary conditions, the amount of vertical overlap of succeeding courses of shingles may be gaugedapproximately by the depth'of the recesses 6. That is, the overlap must be at least the depth of the recesses but maybe more if desired to reduce the area of exposure of the several courses.

These-shingles areusually out without waste from a sheet of conventional roofing material of the character described, as shown in Figure 2 in which the complementary flaps 3 and recesses 6, as well as the complementary tabs 4 and recesses 5 are clearly shown.

5 The cutting operation may be performed by any suitable dies under rolling or direct pressure not necessary to herein illustrate or describe for the reason that the cutting machine forms no part of this invention.

It will be evident from the drawing and description that each shingle will be held in place by at least three nails 11., a and a in addition to the underfolded flap 3 and that the end overlap of the shingles of each course is visually deter= I5 mined by the marks or shoulders l and 1' or if] and in so that the amount of overlap of the shingles of succeeding courses may be varied at will with the assurance that the shingles of each course will be automatically alined by reason of the alinement of the left hand end of each shingle with said marks or shoulders without previously marking any lines upon the roof or siding, thus permitting a given area to be covered in less time, labor and expense than has heretofore been prac- 25 ticed.

What I claim is:

1. A roofing construction comprising shingles laid in courses, the adjacent ends of the shingles of each course being arranged in lapping relation 30 and the adjacent lengthwise edges of the shingles of the several courses being also arranged in lapping relation, each of said shingles being substantially flat and having a portion thereof folded r under the main body so that the surface constituting the reverse side of said main body forms the top side of said under-folded portion, the main body of the shingle and said under-folded portion being so constructed and arranged that a part of said reversed top side of said under- 40 folded portion is exposed for receiving a nail when the shingle is lying flat on the roof with the under-folded portion of the shingle in under-folded position, and said shingles being laid so that each shingle has a portion thereof having a fiat level 45 surface lying in the pocket formed between the main body and the under-folded portion of the adjacent shingle.

2. A roofing construction comprising shingles laid in courses, the adjacent ends of the shingles 50 of each course being arranged in lapping relation and the adjacent lengthwise edges of the shingles of the several courses being also arranged in lapping relation, each of said shingles being made of pliable water-proof material being substan- 55 tially flat and having a portion thereof permanently folded under the main body during the process of manufacture so that the surface constituting the reverse side of said main body forms the top side of said under-folded portion, the

60 main body of the shingle and said under-folded portion of the shingle being so constructed and arranged that a part of said reversed top side of said under-folded portion is exposed for receiving a nail when the shingle is lying fiat on the roof 65 with the under-folded portion of the shingle in under-folded position, and said under-folded portion being also so constructed and arranged with relation to the main body that when a nail has been driven in the exposed part of a shingle the 70 next adjacent shingle may be slid sidewardly into the pocket formed between the main body and the under-folded part of the first shingle, the portion of said next adjacent shingle which lies in the pocket being flat.

75 3. A roofing construction comprising shingles laid in courses, the adjacent ends of the shingles of each course being arranged in lapping relation, and the adjacent lengthwise edges of the shingles of the several courses being also arranged in lapping relation, each of said shingles being made of pliable water-proof material and being substantially fiat and having a part originally projecting below the butt edge thereof, said part being folded under the main body along said butt edge so that a portion thereof extends beyond the adjacent end edge of the main body to form a nailing tab, and said shingles being laid so that each shingle has a single thickness of material lying in the pocket formed between the main body and the under-folded portion of the adjacent shingle.

4. A roofing construction comprising shingles laid in courses, the adjacent ends of the shingles of each course being arranged in lapping relation, and the adjacent lengthwise edges of the shingles of the several courses being also arranged in lapping relation, each of said shingles being made of pliable water-proof material and being substantially flat and having a part originally projecting below the butt edge at only one side thereof and also projecting beyond the main body of the shingle at said side, said part being folded under the main body along said butt edge so that a portion thereof extends beyond the adjacent end edge of the main body to form a nailing tab, and said shingles being laid so that each shingle has a single thickness of material lying in the pocket formed between the main body and the under-folded portion of the adjacent shingle.

laid in courses, the adjacent ends of the shingles of each course being arranged in lapping relation and the adjacent lengthwise edges of the shingles of the several courses being also arranged in lapping relation, each of said shingles being made of pliable water-proof material and being substantially flat and having a part originally projecting below the butt edge at only one side thereof, said part being permanently pre-folded under the main body along said butt edge prior to assembly of the shingles, said main body having a portion cut out therefrom to expose a portion of the under-folded part for receiving a nail, and said shingles being laid so that each shingle has a single thickness of material lying in the pocket formed between the main body and the under-folded portion of the adjacent shingle.

6. A roofing construction comprising shingles laid in courses, the adjacent ends of the shingles of each course being arranged in lapping relation, and the adjacent lengthwise edges of the shingles of the several courses being also arranged in lapping relation, each of said shingles being substantially flat and having a portion permanently folded under the main body during the process of manufacture so that the surface constituting the reverse side of said main body forms the top side of said under-folded portion and projecting sidewardly beyond the right side edge of said main body and adapted to receive a nail, and said shingles being laid from left to right by laying the first shingle and inserting a nail in the projecting portion thereof and then sliding a second shingle from right to left between the main body of the first shingle and the under-folded portion thereof so that the shingles lie in lapping relation.

7. A roofing construction comprising shingles 5. A roofing construction comprising shingles laid in courses, the adjacent ends of the shingles of each course being arranged in lapping relation, and the adjacent lengthwise edges of the shingles of the several courses being also arv5 ranged in lapping relation, each of said shingles being substantially fiat and having a. portion thereof projecting from and below the butt edge thereof and projecting sidewardly beyond the right hand corner thereof and also having a. 1 corresponding portion out out from the upper right hand corner thereof whereby a plurality of shingles may be cut from a single sheet of material substantially without waste, said projecting portion being permanently pre-folded under .15 the main body prior to assembly of the shingles and. having a portion projecting beyond the right hand side edge of the main body to form a nailing tab, and said shingles being laid from left to right by laying the first shingle and inserting a 20 nail in said nailing tab and then sliding a second shingle from right to left between the main body of the first shingle and the under-folded portion thereof so that the shingles lie in lapping relation.

8. A roofing construction'comprising shingles laid in courses, the adjacent ends of the shingles of each course being arranged in lapping relation, and the adjacent lengthwise edges of the shingles of the several courses being also arranged in lapping relation, each of said shingles comprising a substantially flat body of flexible weather-resistant material, and having a part originally projecting below the butt edge thereof, said part being folded under the main body along said butt edge so that a portion thereof extends beyond the adjacent end edge of the main body to form a nailing tab, and said body having its butt edge indented, at a point remote from the underfolded part, and said shingles being laid so that each shingle has a portion of its body lying in the pocket formed between the main body and the underfolded portion of the adjacent shingle, and with its said indented butt edge portion nesting in the fold.

OTTO J. KUHN. 

